Canadian Military History

Interwar Years

National Archives of Canada (PA-068115).

First World War Veterans Learning Handicrafts under the Department of Soldiers' Civil Re-establishment, ca 1918-1919.

The horrors of the First World War, the effects of the Great Depression, changing political systems, and isolationist foreign policies left most nations reluctant to face the possibility of, and thus unprepared for, another war.

Although some measures were put in place to deal with returning veterans from the First World War, most proved inadequate and some were cancelled by the government. Veterans had to create their own organizations, such as the Royal Canadian Legion, to fight for their rights.